Be honest! What things do you judge in other people’s houses?

[Teaandsleep]

Just a fun post.

Recently doing a huge renovation in our own home and am absolutely mortified at the dust everywhere, I keep having visions of visitors coming to the door and seeing all the dust everywhere, it is thick!

I also currently have a spatula sticking out my down pipe drain as we have just unblocked it and it’s to catch any old leaves/moss until it’s replaced 🤣

Clutter and dirt especially in the kitchen or bathroom / loo

General Untidiness / junk / hoarding

Unloved house / garden with no effort to make it nice

No problem with renovation works as it means you are doing an upgrade to your property except when its been ongoing for years and nothing getting done

Loving the replies, had a good chuckle at some!

I always am interested in what hand soap people use, and definitely judge a bar soap if there’s no liquid soap! (I use dove bar soap for my own skin but would always have a liquid soap available too).

@TeaAndBiscuitsAndWine Why do you see it as pretentious when someone admits that certain things make them feel more comfortable?

The main reason someone would feel the need to see books in someone else's home is because they want to be friends with someone that they feel is educated to their standards. It screams insecurity and pompousness.

[quote KneadingKitty]**@TeaAndBiscuitsAndWine* Why do you see it as pretentious when someone admits that certain things make them feel more comfortable?*

The main reason someone would feel the need to see books in someone else's home is because they want to be friends with someone that they feel is educated to their standards. It screams insecurity and pompousness.[/quote]
Why would it be anything to do with education? Most people in the UK are literate, that’s literally all it tells you! Unless they have to be a certain ‘type’ of book in order for them to be considered ‘worthy’? Those posters who have talked about liking to see books have all made it clear it’s not to do with the type of books. It’s like, someone whose house is immaculate to the point that you darent touch any thing vs a house with a sleeping animal on the sofa. The latter will feel more cozy and welcoming. For many of us, it’s the same with books.

All the people showing hate for those who love physical books seem to think those people will judge them as somehow stupid or uneducated because they don’t have a pile of battered trashy novels - like lovers of hard copy books can only possibly love intellectual or academic tomes! Clearly the haters of hard copy book lovers have a lot of insecurities they need to address 😏

@Teaandsleep

Loving the replies, had a good chuckle at some!

I always am interested in what hand soap people use, and definitely judge a bar soap if there’s no liquid soap! (I use dove bar soap for my own skin but would always have a liquid soap available too).

But out of interest, what are you judging here, and what judgement do you pronounce? I can’t think of any particular opinion to be drawn from the format of soap somebody has bought - except perhaps a benignly positive one that people who buy bar soap may do so to avoid plastic waste. But generally, if I’m friendly enough with somebody to be in their house and using their bathroom soap, I don’t need to see the contents of their bathroom to know how I feel about them, so the context of the judgement is even more incongruous.

The only thing I judge about other people's houses - the toilet. I don't usually go to the toilet, but occasionally might need to go for a wee. I can't stand dirty toilets

@TeaAndBiscuitsAndWine

Ah, but this is the point, you are assuming that everyone who is questioning the need to see books prominently displayed, dislikes books.

That's not the case for me, and I suspect it isn't for many others who are challenging this. I love books, they're amongst my most treasured possessions, but I don't think it's important that everyone who comes in my house sees them.

If a book lover wants to know if I like books then they could just ask me what I'm reading, and I'd happily chat for hours.

Has anyone mentioned toilet brushes yet?

@TeaAndBiscuitsAndWine

All the people showing hate for those who love physical books seem to think those people will judge them as somehow stupid or uneducated because they don’t have a pile of battered trashy novels - like lovers of hard copy books can only possibly love intellectual or academic tomes! Clearly the haters of hard copy book lovers have a lot of insecurities they need to address 😏

No, it just makes you look ridiculous to say you can’t relax without seeing a shelf of books because your mind ‘craves stories.’

Firstly, you wouldn’t be getting any stories because you wouldn’t be reading the books, just looking at the outside of them.

Secondly, if your ability to feel comfortable relies on someone having hard copies of books prominently displayed to all visitors then it makes you look odd, like you can’t cope without seeing someone else’s belongings or can’t understand why others might be different to yourself.

Anyone who is my friend already knows I love to read. I don’t have to leave my kindle prominently displayed with the books page open to prove it to them. They could just ask what I’m reading and I’d tell them. And if they don’t read then I’d ask about what’s going on in their life.

To be honest when I go to people’s homes it rarely results in a literary review or impromptu book club anyway because we tend to be talking about other common interests or what’s going on in our lives. I don’t just stand gawping at their bookshelf.

In fairness, I am odd (autistic plus ADHD), so yes, it is hard for me to feel comfortable in other people’s space. Whose mind ‘craves stories’ though? Think I must have missed that post! I’m afraid I’m nowhere that high falutin’ (I know people who are though, but they are also a bit, hmm, let’s just say definitely not NT and leave it at that!)

Right well then it’s obviously to do with your inability to cope in other people’s spaces/feeling the need for comfort items in the shape of an item you enjoy. So wouldn’t really make sense for you to be judging others based on that, because it’s to do with you and not them. So not really applicable to those who judge people for not having books displayed in their home.

The craving stories was from upthread. Such a stupid and pretentious thing to say. As if you somehow suck stories from the outside of a book via osmosis.

C8H1 what on Earth are you on about?! Nobody called anybody thick.

Badbaddog and I amused each other, enjoyed the banter and said as much.

As well as fun times with @Puffalicious yesterday (waves) this thread has made me judge my own living space more. I now have designated hand towels in both bathrooms (previously just bath sheets) and I’m reappraising my books as I had literally stopped seeing them!. Some have been with me all my life so they’re not going anywhere, but many are books I’ve started and not finished, having bought them in a 3 for 2 deal and been disappointed, so I’m giving them away. Thanks MN 😊

I wish DH would reappraise his books

It’s actually mental how ANTI-books people are on here.

As I said already, I didn’t list “lack of books” as something I get my judge-y knickers in a knot over, but Jesus you lot get seriously annoyed at anybody LIKING books, for whatever the reason! Chill out you loons!!

@KimDeals

You seem to be struggling with reading comprehension, I suggest you read more books.

This thread has made me laugh, it's mainly been about TV's and books but yes I know I need to declutter a bit so took a bag of clothes and shoes to the charity shop at lunch. So has been a useful thread too.

I would get judged by some because of my dogs laying on the sofa but I really don't care.

[quote Headabovetheparakeet]@KimDeals

You seem to be struggling with reading comprehension, I suggest you read more books. [/quote]
Don’t be a smarty-pants, I’m not speaking to you specifically (I have no idea what your post was) I’ve just read loads of anti book comments. Relax.

I'm laughing at my mind craves stories - who says that??

I'm a 'reader', but I do most of it via kindle so my bookshelves are kids books and old text books plus the unread political biographies that FIL buys for DH every Christmas.

I'm a community nurse and see all sorts of houses, I generally take people as I find them but I don't like dirty hand towels/bathrooms. Judge not least ye be judged and all that - have just realised my downstairs bathroom is covered in glitter and glue thanks to dd's crafting adventures & subsequent hand washing.

Smells like cigarettes or weed, bad damp smell or obvious untreated damp/mildew, toilets which are dirty AF I mean, properly dirty, overflowing rubbish bins and bags of nappies Everywhere, rotten food/actual rubbish on the floor, beer cans or booze bottles (empties) everywhere or in the overflowing dust bin or garden (alongside an empty recycling bin). Otherwise crack pipes, holes punched in walls, neglected dog chained up outside. I have a pretty low bar. My house is no palace. But dangerous or unsanitary is where I draw my line

Astroturf. I bloody hate it. I don't care how practical it is.

Were there any anti-book posts? I don't recall those. You don't usually get people saying they hate books on MN. Quite the opposite, hence the current pisstaking, which I am very much enjoying. Making fun of pretentious and affected proclamations of extreme bibliophilia isn't a dislike of books themselves.